Driver who ended up dangling from overpass had a BAC of .50
BEAVERTON, Ore. - A truck ended up dangling off an overpass in Beaverton on Saturday, trapping the driver in a precarious position.
The crash happened around 3:30 p.m. on the Denney Road overpass along Highway 217.
When police arrived at the scene, the driver was still inside the truck.
A Technical Rescue Team from Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue was called there as well and secured the truck to a fire engine to keep it from falling. They then used a fire engine basket to get the driver to safety.
The driver was later identified as 38-year-old Matthew Alan Hamilton of Beaverton. He was taken to a local hospital to get checked out - police said injuries he suffered in the crash did not appear to be life threatening.
According to police, Hamilton's blood alcohol content was .50 - that's more than six times the legal limit (it is .08 in Oregon). He had been drinking at a friend's house in the Beaverton area during the Civil War game.
Hamilton will be charged with DUI and driving while suspended from a previous DUI conviction once he is released from the hospital.
Denney Road is the exit just before southbound traffic gets to the Washington Square mall and the crash blocked all of the southbound lanes for five hours.
It's a shame this piece of garbage didn't die in the crash. He's a repeat offender and now the taxpayers will be on the hook paying to keep him off of the streets.
IbBet he didnt feel a thing. Thats going to hurt when he sobers up.
With a BAC of .50 he should have been dead, or at least comatose. Usually anything over .40 is in the critical zone. The guy must have one heck of a tolerance level. He certainly should not drive again on any highway, unless and until he can demonstrate complete sobriety for 10 years.
 @souptonuts should go into the Hall of Fame for drunk drivers
 @drinkmorewater The Hall of Fame is full of far more interesting folks with BACs over 1.0. The Polish have an unusual number of Hall of Famers. :) In 2009 a 45-year-old Polish man was hit by a car, hospital recorded his BAC at 1.23. He survived, but didn't remember anything about the accident nor the drinking. South Africa, 2010... Man with a BAC of 1.6 was caught driving a Mercedes-Benz Vito with 15 sheep stolen from nearby farms. He survived, but was arrested. In 1995 a Polish man had a car accident and the hospital recorded his BAC at 1.48. The doctors thought their equipment was malfunctioning so they ran separate tests which confirmed the BAC. Come to find out the man had beer-bonged pure grain alcohol. He died, but not from the alcohol. A few days later he succumbed to injuries sustained in the crash. In 2004 a Taiwanese woman died after immersing herself for 12 hours in a bathtub full of 40% ethanol in response to the SARS epidemic. Her BAC was 1.35. Again in Poland, 2011, a homeless man was found sleeping half-naked in 14 degree weather. His BAC was 1.024 and he survived. Aaaaand in 1982 a 24-year-old woman was admitted to UCLA emergency room with a BAC of 1.33. Despite that, she was "alert and oriented to person and place." HAH. All that was lifted from Wikipedia. I just find it incredible and somewhat amusing, so I thought I'd share. :)Â
@souptonuts That is a lethal limit, it would appear the the Alcohol has a human problem, I wonder if his blood would ignite at that level, he is a walking bloody mary.
two years breaking rock. Lifetime suspension. Empty bed pans of permanently injured drunk driver victims for awhile.
Good thing nobody but him was injured.
That took lots and lots of skill to accomplish that..guess thats what alcohol does for one..gives them the necessary skills to put their vehicle over a bridge railing..